Attachments Detached
by Kahlan Nightwing
Summary: I've changed one thing about DBZ...and Bulma ends up in Frieza's employ by a treaty with Earth. There, she runs into Vegeta and Kakarott?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_The lizard smiled amiably at the wizened old man peering at him with nervousness, "With all due respect, Lord Frieza, are you certain it's absolutely necessary—"_

_"Dr. Briefs, I assure you that it is. When I made this treaty with Earth I was under the impression that when I asked for technology I would receive it. I'm asking for it now."_

_Dr. Briefs dry-washed his hands, the threat in the sentence not missed, though the tone was still friendly, "Sire, forgive me, but you must understand my own—"_

_"Of course I do, good sir!" Frieza again interrupted the man and smiled further when the other looked even more uncomfortable, "It is your most precious possession I am asking for, but it will only be for twelve months; a year."_

_ Dr. Briefs nodded, "My Lord, she's quite the temperamental one. She won't be happy—"_

_"—To serve her lord?"_

_"N-no, my lord. It is not that at all. It is just that she likes her indepen—"_

_"She will have all that she has there, and so much more. Would you deny your child a chance to explore the world? Would you deny her a chance to stretch out her influences? Who knows how many connections Capsule Corporation will have when she is through?" Frieza sighed and glanced away from the screen, "But I suppose I could have a chat with the leader of your great pla—"_

_"That will not be necessary, my lord. I will talk to her."_

_Frieza turned back to the screen with a bright smile, "Oh will you? That would be wonderful. One of my men shall pick her up in three days time. See you then!" The lizard waggled his fingers at Dr. Briefs as the screen went black. The gesture was not only inane but harmless, yet Dr. Briefs still felt chills. He ran a wrinkled hand through gray, balding hair and sighed. Turning around, he stiffened at the sight of a very angry Bulma, hands on hips, face set in a grimace._

Bulma sighed and wiped her dirty hands on her blue jeans. That had been nine months ago. Ever since they had started a treaty with the seemingly benign lizard in the hopes of gaining much with him, he had started to sink his claws further and further into Earth's government. It wasn't too hard for him to find every decayed spot in the people that ran Earth and play it to his advantage. Threats, money, power, everything and anything he could use he did. He'd used threats against her father. Oh, she saw right through his niceties.

She suddenly banged down the wrench she had in her hand on the metal table, making the scattered parts she was trying to assemble bounce. She whirled on the purple alien standing just over her shoulder, "Kiwi, if you don't stop looking over my shoulder I'm going to ram a screwdriver up your pug-like nose!"

Kiwi winced at the human's volume but grinned all the same, "Master Frieza instructed me to watch you," his eyes trailed her form briefly before flicking back to her even more enraged eyes, "and that is what I shall do."

"He said to keep an eye on me, not ogle me as if I was one of your diseased-ridden whores!" She picked up the screwdriver she had just threatened to use and waved it under his nose, "Now, take a seat and wait in line like every other man on this ship! I swear; none of you testosterone-driven men have any control!" She poked him meaningfully on the chest.

Kiwi's face darkened and he looked as if he would ram her over the desk and into the wall with his fist. For a sixteen-year old girl, she had more guts than men twice her age.

Bulma mockingly rolled her eyes, "Please, you always give me that look! I'm under Earth's protection, not to mention Lord Frieza's."

Kiwi snorted and moved to a seat, there to sit with two other males who had been treated similarly. Kiwi had been seated with them, but the human had seemed so lost in thought, he'd gotten up to check her progress. The other two were cowards who had already faced Bulma's temper one too many times. Kiwi glared at his companions with contempt. He would have to have Master Frieza get some new men.

Bulma turned back to one of the many projects she had to complete. The mantra chanted in her head in time with her work, 3 more months, 3 more months, 3 more months.

Hours later, she set down her tools and wiped her brow on the white, now gray, cloth beside her elbow, sighing in relief.

"Done?"

She glared back at the voice, "Yes, Kiwi. I'm done now. Escort me to my rooms," she added haughtily.

Kiwi glared and motioned the men beside him to stand. They did so after glancing at Bulma, complying only after she had nodded. Kiwi scoffed at their complacency. Not only did this human act as if she owned the place, she had others treating her as if she owned the place!

Kiwi mentally shrugged as the three men flanked Bulma and he led the way back to her room. Knowing the outcome helped.

Bulma sighed with relief as she entered the room and was able to close her door to the three guards that stood outside it, Kiwi having gone to do whatever he did when he wasn't on duty watching her.

She glanced around her room and made a face at the clothes strewn around. It was a one-room dorm-type setting. A bed, dresser, small desk and chair, along with a small, circular window looking out to the black space that surrounded her were all the room had. She had to use the personal showers, as did all employees of Frieza.

Bulma snorted as she picked up her mess. Slaves were more like it. Not a one of the other races on the ship acted as if they liked serving under Frieza. Not that Bulma was close to any of them. Everyone seemed to keep to themselves. Attachments were dangerous, as she had found out soon after coming aboard Frieza's mothership.

She had come out of the pod that had been sent to pick her up to see a mother desperately holding a child, only to have it ripped out of her arms quite brutally by one of Frieza's soldiers. She had stepped forward to act in their defense when the soldier that had been sent to retrieve her held her back with a shake of his head.

The baby had been handed to another soldier with instructions to 'start him on training'. The mother had been left on the floor, weeping, until another soldier had picked her up bodily and carried her away.

She had turned to berate the green-skinned man holding her but he beat her to it by telling her in a voice with no inflection, "Do not form attachments. Lord Frieza knows all attachments and exploits them as the weaknesses they are."

Bulma knew now what that meant. The little boy was probably a hardened soldier by now, and the mother a bitter woman up to her elbows in chores. Neither would acknowledge the other. She'd seen it all happen to other people in just the eight months she had been here. 3 more months, 3 more months.

Despite Frieza's assurances that she would have all she had on Earth, she was limited on what she could do, where she could go, and whom she could see or speak to. She'd found the restrictions suffocating at first, until she found that most of the men, not being able to take out the frustrations she caused them in a sexual manner, would bend before her temper.

She had cowed the three outside and managed to find a way to sneak out whenever she wanted to. Getting the tools she'd needed after bullying them had been easy.

She finished up her cleaning only to look down and grimace at her own appearance. She shrugged. She should go shower and eat dinner, but she'd rather not have her guards floating along beside her like three silent ghosts, although why she needed three guards was beyond her.

So, grinning hugely, she gathered together the things she would need and put them atop the bed. Grunting slightly, she pushed the bed aside, revealing a nice sized hole she had cut in the metal. Picking up the clothes, she sat down on the edge and pushed herself over the edge, landing softly on the grating two feet below. She put the clothes down before her and pushed the bed back; setting the legs into the grooves she had made in the floor just for that reason.

Picking her clothes back up, she crawled on her hands and knees, going straight for some time before the crawlspace branched off into three directions; straight ahead, to her right, and to her left. She took the passage to the right and after some more crawling, found a vent right above her head.

With a triumphal chuckle, which she always gave when she got here, Bulma pushed the vent upwards and pulled herself out of the crawlspace and into one of the stalls in the showers. She had no fear of discovery. She had picked this stall for herself as soon as she had spied the grate. The stalls' doors also reached all the way to the floor. There was no way someone could get or even see into her stall. It even had a coded lock that required her key-card, not that she needed it coming in this way.

After cleaning herself of grime and sweat from a hard day's work and changing into her more-suitable-for-exploring clothing, Bulma crawled back into her little means of transportation. Yes, she should be eating, even going to bed for the early start she'd have in the morning, but she loved getting to see other parts of the ship and listening in to conversations she wasn't supposed to. That's how she'd found out about Frieza's little manipulations of Earth, after all.

She took quite a few turns and passageways she hadn't taken before she heard sounds that intrigued her enough to decide she would stop. She was about to press her ear to the metal above her when she noticed that there was a grate not far from where she was.

She'd never seen another grate like the one in the showers and imagined that maybe she would get a look and not just a listen to what was going on.

She crawled just underneath the grate to find that the sounds above were taking place right over the grate. Okay, so she'd just lie on her back and enjoy what she could see and hear from there.

At first there was nothing but grunts, groans, smacks, and crashes, along with some inventive curses from one particularly gruff voice and chuckles from another boyish one.

Finally, a white boot with a gold tip stepped on the grate. She couldn't see the leg connected to it, but she saw the other leg come up behind it, dark blue clothed, and swing forward, in what looked like, even from this position, a kick.

An orange-clad arm blocked the kick, knocking it away. A navy-clad arm retaliated with a punch, the foot on the grate shifting slightly.

Bulma's eyes were wide. She must have been above the sparring rooms. She was watching two of Frieza's soldiers fighting. She grinned evilly. This definitely might come in handy.

She continued to watch and listen as the two fought on and on for what seemed hours, sometimes coming into view, sometimes vanishing for long periods of time. From what she could see, these two were built!

Finally her ears perked up at the sound of the boyish one's voice, "Come…on…Let's take…a break."

The other voice held a hint of mockery, even though it was as out of breath as the other, "What's wrong…Kakarott? You…getting soft?"

"No…I'm just tired…. We just…purged a…planet…Vegeta. I need…rest."

The other voice took on a hint of anger, "How many times…must I tell you to call me by…my title!"

Bulma saw the blue-clad form fly forward and then saw it crash back, back hitting the grate and almost making her shriek in terror.

"Ah, come on! I wanna break!"

"Fine, Kakarott," the body above her breathed, "Five minutes, then back to it."

'Kakarott' grunted in assent.

The body above her shifted slightly, but seemed quite comfortable just lying there. She herself was not comfortable with it. Luckily the man was breathing heavily and couldn't hear her own hushed breaths, but all he had to do was turn around and he would see her.

Of course, that's exactly what he did. His eyes widened in shock at the two blue orbs that were sparkling up at him before he made an enraged noise and thrust himself and the grate up at the same time, throwing it to the side and grabbing Bulma by the neck of her shirt before she could do more than squeal.

Kakarott turned around from wiping the sweat from his brow with a white cloth to see Vegeta holding a wincing, blue-haired girl up to his face. Vegeta did not look happy.

Bulma found herself getting a look at the gruff-voiced man that was a little too close. She thought the frown in those black eyes was bad until he sneered. He turned to his companion, "Well, Kakarott, looks as if Frieza has taken to sending spies to watch us train."

Kakarott, walked toward the pair, "I don't know. Aren't spies more—spy-ey looking?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes and turned back to the one he held. "Well? What's your name, girl? How much is Frieza giving you for this?" He looked her up and down, as if he was assessing her value to Frieza. "Warming his bed, are we?" his sneer widened.

Bulma's mouth opened in shocked indignation, "WHAT!"

Despite himself, Vegeta winced.

"How dare you, you primitive barbarian! I wouldn't sleep with that frog even if someone told me he'd turn into the man of my dreams when I kissed him!" In spite of the fact that her feet were barely brushing the ground, she raised one hand to his face and poked him in the nose, "Let me go, you little turd! Not only are you an uncouth Neanderthal to suggest such a thing to a lady, but you stink!"

Now it was Vegeta's turn to be caught speechless. He was about to throw the girl into the wall, but whirled around at the sound of laughter.

Kakarott was vainly trying to hold in his mirth, but it all tumbled out when Vegeta looked him with something like affronted dignity. His laugh turned into a full-throated roar that had him on the floor rolling around and holding his sides.

Vegeta would have been turning two shades of red if not for his dark complexion, "Get up, you third-class idiot! How dare you mock your Prince! Do you want to die along with her?"

Kakarott slowly regained his composure, much to Vegeta's chagrin and stood, chest still heaving with laughter and tears at the corners of his eyes. He almost went back to laughing at the almost identical looks of amazement on Vegeta and Bulma's faces. "I'm sorry…. But…that was a good one…. I don't think…I've heard anything that…funny."

Vegeta finally rolled his eyes and sighed with a painful expression, muttering something about 'idiot third-classes that were only good to pummel' that Bulma clearly heard. His eyes snapped back down to her. He shook her, satisfied as her hands gripped the arm that held her, face paling. "Well, girl? Tell me your name! I want to speak it to Frieza when I throw your cold, lifeless body before him."

Kakarott acted as if he would speak up but Vegeta hushed him with a hand motion that brooked no argument.

Bulma's eyes flicked over to Kakarott, since he seemed the sanest of the pair. She saw no help there, only a shrug with concerned eyes. Her eyes went back to the hard ones of the one who held her, "I-I'm Bulma. Bulma Briefs."

Vegeta's brow creased, "Briefs." He looked back over at Kakarott. "I've heard that name somewhere."

Kakarott was practically bouncing from foot to foot, arm raised in the air, the other one resting on his head to support it. The arm waved wildly back and forth, demanding attention.

Vegeta again rolled his eyes, "What is it, Kakarott?"

"Oh, oh, oh. I know this one! She's the daughter of the president of Capsule Corporation on Earth."

Vegeta looked impressed, both eyebrows coming up, "Sometimes you do surprise me, Kakarott." He turned back to the girl in his hands, ignoring Kakarott's little victory dance, "How do I know you're who you say you are? The one you mentioned just happens to be conveniently under both Earth's treaty and Frieza's protection."

Bulma huffed, blowing air right into Vegeta's face. He looked slightly irked, no matter that it hadn't exactly been intentional. "How many other blue-haired beauties do you know who have the temper of a volcano?"

Vegeta titled his head to one side and smirked, "True." His hand suddenly released her and she fell to the floor with an undignified 'oof'. She glared up at the flame-haired man as he, ignoring her, knelt by the opening created by the grate and looked down into it.

She played with the thought of pushing the rear end sticking up into the hole but was prevented from it by the hand that suddenly thrust itself into her face. She started back in surprise and looked up into Kakarott's smiling face.

He held the other hand next to her mouth, shielding it from Vegeta, "Don't mind him. He's always this grumpy after a purge."

"I heard that, Kakarott." Vegeta rose from his position and glared at the man, who merely put the hand he had been shielding his mouth with behind his head, grinning apologetically.

Vegeta once again rolled his eye; it must have been a common motion around Kakarott, and turned to the still seated girl, "Is that how you get around? I heard you had three guards set to you. So, you managed to get away from them?"

Bulma took the hand Kakarott still had out for her and waited until she had brushed herself off, loving the way Vegeta seemed to almost growl with impatience. She met his eyes evenly, "Yes, I did. The guards weren't hard to get away from. All you have to have to do is throw a temper tantrum, which I am queen of, and they crumble.

"So, are you going to tell on me now? Wonder how much more in favor you'd get with Frieza? Perhaps get your choice of a whore?"

Kakarott's hand on her arm told her she'd said the wrong thing. From the look on Vegeta's face, she was lucky she wasn't being forcefully held against the wall. Instead Vegeta pointed at the crawlspace, "Go."

Bulma gulped audibly and looked at Kakarott, who just gave her a silent look that said not to speak and led her by the elbow to the crawlspace.

As he lowered her into the crawlspace as any gentleman would have, he leaned in to her ear, "Come back in a week. I'll have calmed him down by then."

Bulma gave the man one wide-eyed looked before the grate was put back in place, telling her she would get no more information from him that night. As she crawled back to her room, sense of direction not failing her, she thought on what exactly she'd said to make him react like that. And why she wasn't trying to dig herself out of a wall.

The week passed quickly, with Bulma getting done with the project she had been working on and starting yet another one.

Kiwi had managed to leer at her every day and ignored her every tantrum and screaming fit. He seemed impervious to them. Then again, with how many women he saw a night; he had to have a pretty big knowledge of a woman's moods. That was about the only thing he did have knowledge on too.

Bulma was at the edge of her seat, not literally of course, she wasn't sitting all the time, about seeing the two she had met again. It was mostly to see the friendlier one, Kakarott. She could care less about that jerk that had dropped her so unceremoniously onto the ground and then thrown her out; her, heiress to Capsule Corporation; when she'd offended him even though he had done the same to her.

She was intrigued enough about how he had reacted, so—violently. Almost as if he hadn't expected her to say it or was so used to hearing it he had expected it. She always had liked mysteries. This boy, he couldn't be that much older than her, was no exception. In fact, he seemed a contradiction in terms.

She couldn't wait until she saw them tonight.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Vegeta suddenly dropped to the ground, front leg sweeping out; one hand back to balance him. The out-swept leg caught the orange-clad man unawares and he tumbled to the floor to catch himself on his hands, thrusting himself up and tumbling over Vegeta as Vegeta tucked himself into a ball and rolled forward.

Both men came back up on the opposite side, breathing heavily and eyeing each other. Vegeta charged and pulled back suddenly at the tapping sound that came from just beneath him.

He hopped back and eyed the grate he remembered too well, before looking back up at Kakarott with a raised eyebrow. Kakarott grinned at him and moved to the grate. "What do you think you're doing, Kakarott?"

Kakarott stopped and looked confused, going so far as to scratch his head, "I'm going to let Bulma in."

Vegeta folded his arms across his chest and moved to stand atop the grate, "I never invited her back. Did you, Kakarott?" The question held a tinge of threat.

Kakarott rubbed his neck with one hand, grinning sheepishly. Where he had picked up these non-Saiyan habits was beyond Vegeta. "Actually, yeah. I don't know anyone else on this ship besides you that I like."

Vegeta rolled his eyes at the hint of a whine the last statement carried. A tug on his bodysuit around his left ankle had him glaring beneath him at the two eyes looking up. "Will you get your fat self off this grate? I'm getting a cramp!"

Vegeta smirked, "Fat? Are you sure you're not describing yourself?"

An indignant huff came from the mouth below the eyes, which sparked with anger, "I'll have you know I'm at my prime!"

Vegeta winced at the volume the girl's voice had taken and moved off the grate. "Fine. But you can only stay on one condition."

Bulma had already managed to push the grate back and halfway out of the crawlspace, wincing slightly. She hadn't been lying about the cramp. She looked at Vegeta with something akin to a glare, "What?"

Vegeta smirked and pointed to the bench set into the wall of the training room, "Sit down and shut up. Don't interrupt our training."

Bulma huffed at first, but one look at Kakarott told her not to stick her foot in her mouth again. Truly, she felt the same way as Kakarott. She found the company quite pleasant. Well, Kakarott's at least. Plus, she was curious.

She moved to the bench and made herself comfortable, massaging her right calf, the perpetrator of the earlier mentioned cramp.

Vegeta nodded curtly to her and turned back to Kakarott, "Well? Don't just stand there. We've got two more hours of training left."

Kakarott nodded, sighing as if he never looked forward to this 'training' though his eager grin said otherwise.

Bulma was left in shocked awe as the two men traded blow after blow after blow, never seeming to tire. She was shocked at how much they seemed to enjoy pummeling each other.

An hour passed before Kakarott finally collapsed to sit on the ground, head rising and falling with each huffed breath. Sweat dripped onto the floor in a steady stream.

Vegeta cockily leaned against the wall, more to keep from landing on the floor with Kakarott. "Quitting…already?"

Kakarott's head came up and he eyed Vegeta, "You may…like to…torture…your body. But…I'm hungry!" His stomach rumbled quite loudly to prove his point.

Vegeta frowned and folded his arms across his chest, "Food's already…been served…Kakarott…. You know that."

Kakarott started to nod, but Bulma's voice made his head turn to her instead, "If you guys need food, I know how to get it."

Vegeta raised a brow in her direction while Kakarott looked as if, if he'd had enough energy, he'd hug her. "And how would you do that, girl?"

Bulma frowned and waved a hand at the crawlspace, "How else?"

Vegeta pushed himself off the wall and toward her. She fidgeted nervously, but he merely reached above her head and grabbed a towel, wiping sweat from his brow.

The sudden exposure of his rib cage revealed a blooming stain of blood. Vegeta almost jumped when he felt hands pushing the towel to the side and faintly brushing his side. He backed up and eyed the surprising human. "What are you doing?"

Her eyes became darker, almost clouded, "You're hurt."

He shrugged, his own eyes shadowed by his brows, "A scratch."

Bulma rose and moved at Vegeta so quickly he almost stumbled over his own feet backing up. She stopped and put both her hands on her hips, "Stop that! I just want to see it! It could get infected."

Vegeta snorted, "We don't get infections."

Bulma huffed and walked toward him again, "Nonsense, everybod—" Of course the sudden unraveling of the belt around his waist to flick in the air with irritation stuck the words in her throat so that she ended on an 'eep'. Now it was her turn to back up a few steps.

Vegeta again cocked an eyebrow, following it by cocking his head to one side, "What is wrong with you, girl?"

Bulma met his eyes with her wide ones, "You're not human!"

Kakarott chuckled from where he still sat on the floor, "Of course not! You're the only human onboard. What made you think we were humans?"

Bulma looked from one man to the other. Both were looking at her with differing expressions of confusion. "I just—I mean. You look human. I just didn't expect you to be—Saiyan." The hesitation at the end put special emphasis on the word.

Vegeta scowled, "I see."

Kakarott still looked confused, "See what?"

Vegeta swung the towel over his shoulder, folding his arms across his chest, and glanced at Kakarott from the corner of his eye, "You don't listen to all the things said about us, Kakarott." He moved a shoulder to indicate Bulma, "She has." He glared at Bulma, "Perhaps you'll be wanting to leave now. Wouldn't want us to ravage you or anything." His tone was quite bitter.

Kakarott stood, "Vegeta, I thought I told you that she didn't mean—"

Vegeta pompously thrust his nose into the air, cutting right through Kakarott, "If she didn't then, she does now."

Bulma's mouth opened then snapped it shut again. She met Vegeta glare for glare and stepped up to poke him in the chest, "Since when did I ask you to speak for me? It's kinda hard to not listen to what's said. And the part about you being an arrogant jerk is certainly not far off. However, if you think I'm going to leave because of some false comment on you forcing women, I have to add stupid to that description too."

Vegeta grabbed the hand poking him in such an offending manner and pulled her into him, "What makes you think it's not true, girl?" His eyes stabbed into her blue ones, trying to trap them.

She laughed at him, making him blink in shock and effectively breaking his eyes' hold. She pointed over at Kakarott, who was looking at the two of them with wide eyes and gaping mouth, "I don't think he'd be reacting like that. And you certainly wouldn't have reacted the way you did when I said it a week ago."

Vegeta pushed her away from him with a growl, "Whatever, girl. So, if it wasn't that one, which one was it?"

Bulma glanced at Kakarott, finding what she had heard against his friendly personality conflicted. She looked back at Vegeta. "You're cold-blooded killers. Frieza's living weapons of mass destruction. You can turn into giant monkeys and destroy a whole solar system with a flick of your hands. Some say—well, some say that if Frieza told you to lick his feet, you would. Others that you're so ruthless you destroyed your own planet because they wouldn't go along with Frieza's rule."

Vegeta's eyes cut into her like razors. "Ah, is that all? Because I know there's more. We eat children alive. We enjoy a little romp with those we're assigned to kill. Frieza uses us as his assassins. We're Frieza's little toys…."

Kakarott laid a hand on Vegeta's arm, "Stop it. You know those things aren't true, Vegeta."

Vegeta shook free of Kakarott's hold, angry he hadn't sensed the man that close, He moved toward the girl who looked truly afraid of him, "No, some of it is right, Kakarott. We do turn into giant monkeys. We are cold and ruthless killers, Frieza's personal assassins. Perhaps all of it is true."

Kakarott folded his arms across his chest and glared at Vegeta's back, his voice so strong and forceful Vegeta looked back at him in shock. "None of it is true! We are not monkeys! We turn into Oozaru! And we are not cold and ruthless. I'm certainly not and neither are you! And the day I see you bow before Frieza is the day I decide to fast for the rest of my life!" He shook his head, "You're too hard on yourself, Vegeta. I've always said that—"

"Kakarott!" Vegeta moved toward him but was stopped by a hand on his arm, gentle and small. He looked down at the blue-haired human with confusion. She dared to touch him after she had just been quaking in fear of him?

"I never said I believed any of it. It just surprised me that you were the two Saiyans everyone whispers about. You don't fit how they describe you." She released his arm and bent over to check the wound that had started all this. "Now, let me check this so we can go get some food."

Vegeta's eyebrows once again drew down as he tried to assimilate the actions of this confusing girl. He looked at Kakarott, but Kakarott only shrugged at him, looking more concerned about the food than the behavior of the human. It was a shrug that said, 'She's not Saiyan. What do you expect?'

Bulma prodded around the bloody area, trying to feel for the wound through the bodysuit and felt Vegeta flinch under her when she touched a particularly sensitive spot. "Ah, there it is. It doesn't look too bad." She rose back up.

Vegeta had his arms folded across his chest, the look on his face that of a petulant child whose word had been questioned, "I told you it was only a scratch."

Bulma rolled her eyes, much the same way Vegeta did to Kakarott, "Well it certainly didn't look like 'just a scratch'. Now come on. I'll take you to a place where Kakarott can get some food and you can get that cleaned up."

Vegeta was about to protest this 'cleaned up' part when Kakarott, who had been shifting from foot to foot in impatience, pushed him aside to grab a hold of Bulma and practically drag her to the crawlspace's opening.

Bulma laughed, not only at Kakarott's antics but Vegeta's reaction to them. These two were a handful!

She dropped lightly into the crawlspace and crawled forward a ways before stopping and waiting for the other two. Kakarott stopped and looked back, watching as Vegeta crawled into the corridor and pulled the grate back over the hole.

"Stay close, you two. I don't want you to get lost. It's so dark you can't see more than a foot before you."

Kakarott would have left the statement as it was and nodded his thanks. Vegeta however, never could leave a statement the way it was. "We can see perfectly well in the dark, girl! Stop your jabbering and lead!"

Bulma huffed and crawled forward, keeping up her speed purposely so that the bigger men behind her would have problems. However, that proved not to happen. While Kakarott was indeed bigger, Vegeta was not. He managed, after much complaining from Kakarott, to squeeze past him and position himself behind Bulma.

Bulma, looking back, just knew he was smirking at her. She slowed down for Kakarott's benefit.

After some time spent taking many corners and crawling through many corridors, Bulma stopped and pointed just ahead. Vegeta's keen eyes picked out the design of a carpet just above them, an almost perfect hole being cut into the metal above them, obviously a floor.

Bulma eagerly threw aside the carpet and crawled from underneath it, ducking to avoid hitting her head on the table just above her.

Vegeta was not so lucky, banging his head up against the hard metal of the table. He scowled at Bulma, who was smirking at him much as she imagined he must have been smirking at her.

They both crawled from under the table and stood as Kakarott levered himself out of the hole. Both heard a the metallic clang of his head hitting the underside, but he poked his face out, beaming brightly, as if nothing had happened, "Where's the food?"

Bulma waved them to the side of the mess hall, "In the kitchen."

Kakarott suddenly sprinted past her and threw open the swinging doors, leaving only a breeze behind him. Bulma raised a brow at Vegeta walking calmly beside her and he shrugged, "He's been hit in the head one too many times."

Bulma nodded, grinning, and entered the kitchen behind Vegeta, "Don't make a mess, Kakarott. No one can know we've been here."

Kakarott, half his body stuck in the fridge, came back out with both his arms loaded, nodding vigorously at her.

Bulma motioned Vegeta to the sink and sighed when he stopped with him arms folded across his chest, face set in stubborn refusal, "Oh, come on! I just want to wash that wound before it stains your clothes any worse. Besides, how can you eat when you're bleeding? I thought Princes were a clean lot."

Vegeta unfolded his arms and strode to the sink, hopping onto the counter and scowling at her, "Most Princes aren't serving under Frieza."

Bulma nodded her assent to that statement and turned on the water, "So, strip."

"Jeez, I know you humans are hor—"

"Don't even finish that sentence, bub! You know what I mean!"

Vegeta smirked as he complied, stripping himself to his waist to reveal rippling muscles that Bulma couldn't help but flick her eyes at as she adjusted the water.

One look at the wound turned her attention from his body. The wound gleamed red and looked an angry pink around its edges, not to mention the skin around it was bruising. Bulma sucked in a breath, "Doesn't that hurt?"

Vegeta shrugged, ignoring the feeling as she applied a warm cloth to the wound, wiping away dried blood as gently as she could. "Could be worse."

Bulma bit her lower lip at that statement. Truthfully spoken, it gave it a grim edge. "So, what's your story? How did you and Kakarott get set together? Wasn't there another Saiyan called Nappa?"

At the long pause that ensued, she looked up, catching her breath at the look in Vegeta's eyes. "Why do you want to know?" His voice was hushed.

She swallowed audibly and looked back down at the wound, trying to get one stubborn piece of dried blood off, "Well, I figured we could trade stories. And if I'm going to be around you so much, I'd like to know about you. Besides, the rumors don't give you much of a picture at all."

She felt him shrug, "Not much to tell really. Kakarott was brought to Frieza when he was seven. He had a brother, but his ki proved to be too weak. He was sent to your planet, I believe. He must have failed in his mission to purge it if there is still life there."

Bulma scowled, irked that she was hearing Kakarott's story, "What did his brother look like? Maybe I've seen him."

"Widow's peak, long hair going down to his ankle, tail. Something must have happened to him is my only guess."

Bulma nodded, "And you?"

"What about me?"

Bulma scowled up at him, "I said what's your story, not what's Kakarott's story. Why's the Prince of your race under Frieza? I mean, was it part of the treaty?"

He shook his head, "It wasn't a part of the original treaty. The treaty merely stated that anything Frieza needed for warfare we would provide. In return, we would get our choice of the planets purged, their technology, slaves, anything. He asked for me on my fifth birthing day so I was given to him for instruction purposes and to purge planets for him.

"Nappa was my bodyguard. His back was broken on a purging mission not one year before Kakarott was brought in. He couldn't fight, so I killed him."

Bulma couldn't break from Vegeta's gaze, but she knew she had to have paled. Vegeta looked up to watch Kakarott putting all the items together to make a huge sandwich, "Are you done yet?"

Bulma frowned up at him, "What would Frieza had done to him?"

Vegeta looked back down at her, shock tingeing his words, "To Nappa? He probably would've kept him alive. The worst thing a Saiyan can live with is not being able to fight."

Bulma nodded, "Kakarott's right. You are too hard on yourself."

Vegeta gritted his teeth and pushed himself off the counter, causing Bulma to back up. He pulled his top back on, "We should be going. We will be missed."

Bulma nodded and turned to Kakarott, who was just stuffing the last of the sandwich into this mouth. He looked up at the them, cheeks filled like a chipmunk, "Yoth guyth rethy tho goth?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "Don't be disgusting, Kakarott! Talk after you swallow."

Kakarott hastily swallowed the food in his mouth, "Sorry. I said you guys ready to go?"

Vegeta nodded curtly and made his way out the door and to the hole underneath the table. He was at it and ducking under the table as Bulma and Kakarott exited the kitchen. Kakarott peered at Bulma's troubled eyes, "What's wrong?"

Bulma kept her voice low, "Why's he so hard on himself?"

Kakarott sighed, his shoulders hunching down slightly. He slowed Bulma down with a hand. "He has to be. If he isn't hard on himself he wouldn't be able to survive Frieza and all the others." He shook his head, "Right now him and Kiwi are having problems. They're equal in power and Kiwi never fails to rub it in his face."

Bulma's eyes widened in recognition, "Kiwi? That little gnat?" She smirked suddenly, "Say, Kakarott, doesn't Kiwi have a special diet? His food doesn't get served with the rest?"

Kakarott frowned, "Yeah. Why?"

Bulma's smirk widened, "You get Vegeta to challenge Kiwi to a fight tomorrow at dinner, and let me take care of the rest. I guarantee he'll have the advantage over that snub-nosed purple freak."

Kakarott looked dubious, "Okay, I suppose I could tell him some of the things Kiwi has said about him behind his back."

Bulma looked surprised, "I thought you didn't listen to that stuff?"

Kakarott shrugged, "Vegeta assumes that. I hear more than he thinks I do."

By this time they had ducked under the table to find Vegeta waiting for them in the crawlspace. "Took you two long enough." His gaze flicked from one beaming face to the other before turning with a grunt and going on ahead, muttering something neither one could hear.

Vegeta led them unerringly back to the training room, easily pushing aside the grate and entering. He brushed off his clothes as he stood and turned to wait for the other two. Kakarott exited first, extending a hand, which Bulma took with a smile and thanks.

Vegeta grunted again, "Well, don't you have someplace to be, girl?"

Bulma folded her arms across her chest, "Not really. I'm a night owl."

Kakarott muffled a yawn with one hand, "Well, I'm not. I'm going on to bed, you guys. See you tomorrow?" He aimed the question at Bulma.

"Only if his highness allows it." Bulma quipped.

Vegeta scowled at her, "If I said no you'd still be here. You're becoming a bane, girl!"

Bulma smiled sweetly at him, "It's in my job description. Bane for the Prince. Just wish I got paid more." She winked at Kakarott, who stifled laughter as he left, the door sliding shut behind him.

Vegeta folded his arms across his chest, "I usually continue my training after Kakarott leaves."

Bulma shrugged and moved past him to sit at the bench, "Watching you should be more entertaining than watching the ceiling. Falling to sleep in outer space is weird."

Vegeta tilted his head to one side, "You get used to it." He scowled again, "But I am not entertainment."

Bulma shrugged, "You do more than the ceiling."

Vegeta gave up with a little sigh and lay on the ground, beginning his pushups on one finger. He couldn't help but smirk at Bulma's shocked look. She huffed at him.

The silence was beginning to bother him, that and her staring, "Well, you said we'd share stories. What's yours?"

She was actually pleasantly shocked he was curious, "Much like your planet, my planet signed a treaty with Frieza that allowed him access to any of our technology. Since I'm the heiress of the biggest Corporation on Earth, Frieza asked for me to make some things for him on his spaceship. Seems you and I aren't that far apart in situations."

"Have you ever met Frieza?"

Bulma watched him go up and down a couple times before answering, "Only from a distance."

"We're far apart then." He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, "What projects are you making for him?" There seemed to be a different glimmer to his eyes now.

Bulma shrugged, "He doesn't tell me. I just make them. However, I think one is a plasma gun, the other a type of collar to block ki, and something else that will heal virtually any wound. Some other things he's given me…I don't want to know what they're for." She almost shuddered at some of the blueprints the words recalled to mind.

He made a sound and she looked up to see him shifting onto his back to do sit-ups, though he still made contact with her eyes. She continued, "He's manipulated everyone on Earth so badly none will go against him. We entered this Empire under the impression we would be partners, now we're more like slaves. I've only got three more months and I'll get to go back home. Then maybe I can use my own power to make some people see the truth."

Vegeta's eyebrow rose at the steel in her voice, "Three more months? A lot can happen in that little of a time. I had only a couple years left until I would've been able to go back."

Bulma's eyes narrowed. Was he suggesting what she thought he was suggesting? "A meteorite destroyed Vegeta-sei."

Vegeta shrugged as he came up, his words came after he was down. "According to Frieza, yes."

Bulma shook her head, "But what would that gain him? Why in the world would he make a treaty with a planet only to destroy it?"

Vegeta frowned as he quit his exercising; draping his hands over his knees, and looked at her, "He has to have a reason? A man with that much power, political, military, and physical, does not need reason for the things he does. He merely does them. What wouldn't he gain? He already has the one thing he could use from Earth, why does he need the rest of it?"

Bulma put a hand to her mouth, suddenly terrified. "Oh my Kami! But, it's inconceivable! He wouldn't dare!"

Vegeta looked disturbed and rose to sit beside her, causing her to look at him, "How did you know he was enamoring himself to your people anyways?"

Bulma was only too glad to change the subject; even it wasn't very far away. "I used the crawlspace."

He smirked at her, "So, you were spying on us."

She ducked her head, embarrassed, "I thought maybe I could find out something to use against Frieza. I didn't trust him then, but now…. He's crazy."

Vegeta nodded, "Yes, and he's taking us all down with him." A hand rose and stopped before touching her hand, falling back into his lap. "You're making stuff for him. What if someone else wanted stuff made?"

Bulma hadn't seen the hesitant movement. She looked with all seriousness into his black eyes, "What kind of stuff?"

Vegeta shrugged, staring at the grate covering the crawlspace, "Better training equipment so that someone can become stronger. Maybe stronger than the one he works for."

Bulma nodded, "Yes, I trust this someone. I would do it."

He turned wide eyes to her. He swore she said these things just to throw him off. "You don't know him. How can you trust him?"

Bulma shrugged and glanced down at the hand on Vegeta's lap, "I feel like I know him. Besides, this tyrant is going to die someday. I'd rather he be replaced by someone who has reason." The hand twitched slightly, as if it could feel her scrutiny. "Have this someone make up the plans and I'll bring my tools tomorrow and get started."

Vegeta moved the hand she was staring at, only to have her stare at his eyes, "What do you want in return?"

Bulma's blue brows drew over her eyes, making them shadowed, "Company?" She explained further when he only blinked at her, "I've been eight months on this ship without anybody to talk to and I'm about to go stir-fry! I just want someone to talk to is all. I don't need money or anything, just—a friend. I've never really had one; even on Earth."

Vegeta nodded, "I can't guarantee—"

She hushed him by standing up, "You just be your old grumpy self and I'll be satisfied." She brushed imaginary dirt off her pants and started to the crawlspace. She glanced behind her to see him still sitting on the bench, and flashed a smile at him. "See you tomorrow!"

The corner of his mouth came up slightly as he watched her vanish into the hole. He too left, to go make up the plans she would need the next day.

**NEXT**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Bulma entered the mess hall through the double doors, dodging a couple soldiers who looked as if they would just shoulder her aside. She grimaced as she carefully made her way through the throng, slipping past boisterously laughing men and gossiping females to where the kitchens were. She hated large crowds and while dinner hadn't been served yet, everyone was already in the room, getting choice seats and waiting for fresh, hot servings.

As Bulma got to the doors, she couldn't help but notice how every table seemed a different category of people. To the left of the room, closest the door she had just entered was her group: scientists, fighters, and anyone else here on treaties, all female.

She scanned the crowd quickly and pinpointed the warrior's table at the far right in the back. Vegeta and Kakarott said side by side on the end, distanced from the other warriors by choice and rumors. Kakarott spied her and waved wildly only to shrink down when Vegeta cuffed him on the back of the head. Kakarott looked to be whining something and that was probably Vegeta answering snappishly. He did not acknowledge her.

Bulma stifled a chuckle and entered the kitchens. In here it was even more of a dodge-and-duck. Plus the smells of all the various meals being cooked for so many different races mingled together into one unappealing scent. If she weren't so hungry, Bulma would've lost her appetite.

She quickly glanced around, finding the special orders just a bit further back, slightly removed from the bustle all around. She had just about made it to where they were when a big, broad stomach positioned itself in front of her. She looked up and stepped back at the immense size of the chef standing before her.

He looked down at her with green cat eyes, "What're you doing in here, girl? No one's allowed back here!"

She didn't have to pretend to cower, "I'm sorry. I'm just so hungry and I thought I might get an apple or something."

The man's face softened slightly, "Ah, you're that human aren't you? Must be pretty lonely being the only one of your kind here, eh?" He stretched his hand to the side into a basket, pulling out a red, round object Bulma hoped was an apple. "Here, eat this in here so no one outside sees it. Wouldn't want that whole gang out there begging now would we?" He grinned down at her.

Bulma smiled back, feeling a twinge of guilt for fooling this man. But the ends would be worth the means. She'd make sure of that.

The huge chef went back to overseeing the food care and Bulma munched on the food she had been given. It tasted surprisingly like a combination of a pear and apple. She grunted in approval of the choice of food and moved casually over to the special orders again.

The men and women working around her ignored her since she stayed out of their way. She looked down at the many plates of food that were special order and saw Vegeta and Kakarott had special orders. She supposed that since they were the only two Saiyans, they would have special orders, or maybe Vegeta had just demanded it; he was that arrogant.

Kiwi's plate was just to the right of the two Saiyans, probably because he was going to be eating at their table. She put her back against the table and circumspectly reached into her pocket with one hand while taking a big bite out of her fruit. As she chewed and swallowed, making sure no one was looking, she pulled out a tiny vial and sprinkled its contents into Kiwi's soup bowl, not having to look back as she stirred the powder until it dissolved. The soup bubbled for just a moment before calming, the same light tan color it had been before.

Bulma slipped the vial back into her pocket and pushed herself off the table, licking the last of the juice from her fingers and throwing the core into the trash just as a chef picked up the tray the specials were on and carried them out.

Bulma herself left the kitchens, keeping her face carefully neutral. She glanced over at the warrior's table to see Kiwi sit down across from Vegeta with a couple of his buddies, a regular clique. She could see Vegeta's grimace from here.

Bulma grimaced at the people sitting at her own table. It looked as if she'd have to sit beside the voluptuous pink-skinned, blonde-haired female that liked to think herself Kiwi's, more like Kiwi's whore; one of several.

The older woman sneered at Bulma as Bulma sat down. She made sure to not even look at the slut. She was barely wearing anything and every male in the room was making sure she knew it.

The older woman; Bulma didn't know her name, leaned over and began to whisper to one of her clique while glancing from the corner of her eye at Bulma. The other girls giggled and Bulma rolled her eyes only too happy when the food was finally served.

She didn't eat much of what was put before her, making sure instead that Kiwi was eating his own. She couldn't see the purple alien, but she did hear his whiny voice rise up above everyone's chatter to complain that his soup tasted chalky.

Bulma couldn't hide her grin, and didn't stop grinning until a commotion from the warriors' table had everyone standing up, trying to peer around each other and see what was going on.

Bulma peeked between two huge men to see Vegeta standing, his chair thrown back, towering over a smirking Kiwi, who looked as unconcerned with Vegeta's anger as he always was.

Kakarott had wide eyes on both warriors, tensed to tackle Vegeta if he decided to jump Kiwi right here. Any attack would cause a huge fight in the mess hall and Frieza would not be happy.

Instead, Vegeta did something that stilled every person in the room with tense expectation. With measured movements, Vegeta removed one glove and flipped it so that he held it by the end. It dangled before Kiwi's smirking face.

Kiwi seemed as unfazed from the deliberate show as he was of Vegeta's stony face, "What? Need to prove your manliness to me?"

Vegeta snarled and swung the glove with all the force he could muster. The resulting blow snapped Kiwi's head to the side with a harsh crack that died away in the still room only after echoing.

Bulma heard some of the men giving appreciative 'oohs' and some wincing in sympathy as Kiwi's head turned back to glare at Vegeta, smirk gone. The whole side of his face was an angry red.

Vegeta dropped the glove to the table before Kiwi. Bulma knew what this meant. She'd heard of knights of old on her world who had done this same thing with metal gauntlets in order to formally challenge a foe. It seemed Vegeta didn't need a metal glove to leave an imprint.

Bulma smirked as Kiwi picked up the glove. Whether he knew he was answering the challenge or not, Vegeta made it quite clear, his voice grating against the induced silence, "You and me in the arena in one hour."

As Vegeta walked away from the table, Kakarott hurriedly wiping his mouth on a napkin and following, the room burst out with conversation as everyone sat back to their meals to discuss this new and exciting happening.

Bulma sat back down at her table only to be greeted with the nasal voice of the pink alien beside her, "Kiwi's going to wipe the floor with that monkey."

Bulma took a dainty bite out of her sandwich, gears turning like mad in her mind. She swallowed and casually stated, "I don't know. I'd put my money on the Saiyan. He seemed pretty ticked."

The slut gasped in shock that the brainy geek beside her would dare to speak up. She turned fully on Bulma, "Oh yeah?"

Bulma turned to the impure one with a smirk, "Yeah. In fact, I'm willing to put my money where my mouth is." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a device that allowed her to access her money from Earth. "Look." She punched a few codes onto the device and held it up for everyone at the table to see, "500 zenni. I'm willing to bet 500 zenni that the Saiyan wins."

The other tossed back her blonde hair haughtily, "What makes you so sure that flea-bitten barbarian will win?"

Bulma shrugged, "I told you, he looked pissed. Plus, I heard he's masochistic. He gets off on pain. I don't think Kiwi's like that, is he?" She directed the question at the whore beside her with an innocent tone.

Some of the girls caught the undertones and snickered until the slut turned her glare on them. She looked back at Bulma and strengthened her glare. She pulled out seven hundred zenni from her bra and slapped it down on the table, "You're on!"

Bulma almost choked on laughter she quickly forced back down. So that was how—And the slut didn't even seem to notice her lopsidedness.

Bulma watched as one of the girls collected the money and began to ask for bets. Soon, everyone in the room was betting on the match. Although Kiwi was making sure that everyone who bet on Vegeta turned their bets around. He didn't want them to lose their money after all.

Bulma forced herself to sit patiently and wait for the hour to pass when everyone began to file out to the arena. It looked as if the whole ship was going to view it. She giggled triumphantly. This would be fun!

She managed to squeeze nearer the front and got a seat conveniently next to Kakarott, who pushed aside some of the men around him as if they were too close to him so Bulma could sit. Neither one spoke or looked at the other, though Bulma knew Kakarott was dying to ask what she had done.

Vegeta stood in the center of the arena, arms crossed in front of his chest, ignoring the crowd around him that was either jeering at him or cheering him on. His eyes flicked at her form then away as Kiwi ushered himself into the arena as well.

Kiwi strutted up to Vegeta circling him like a predator, "So, Vegeta, ready to be humiliated? Perhaps we can even show all these folks exactly what got you into such a huff, eh?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes, though they still managed to follow the purple alien's every movement, "Please, Kiwi. Our audience hardly wants to hear you speak. They want to see us fight."

Kiwi stopped in front of Vegeta and shifted into a fighting stance, Vegeta following not far behind with his own, "Then let's entertain them."

Vegeta nodded and immediately charged, his hand back for a punch. As Kiwi moved to the right and brought an arm up to block it, Vegeta changed tactics, his left foot going up for a roundhouse that would hit Kiwi's right side.

Kiwi switched his blocks just as quickly, smirking as he threw his own attack, grabbing Vegeta's leg and swinging himself under it, an uppercut aimed for Vegeta's backside.

Vegeta gave a colorful curse and twisted his body, driving an elbow into the hand that held his leg to release it. The punch still grazed Vegeta's side, bruising it, but Kiwi was now shaking his numb hand. Both men rolled away from each other, eyeing each other for any more movements.

The crowd was on its feet, roaring as one huge monster that wanted blood. Bulma stood as well, but it was only Kakarott that let out the hoots and hollers for Vegeta. Bulma was waiting for the sign that would tell her it was starting to work.

Kiwi took the initiative this time, taking one step before suddenly stopping. His face screwed into an expression of confusion that slowly gave way to horror. Vegeta stopped, wondering if this was some kind of diversionary tactic. His eyebrow went up as both Kiwi's eyes turned inward, as if he were trying to look at his nose.

It looked as if the purple alien was going to pass out right there, but instead, a loud and wet noise came from one particular region of the alien.

The whole stadium went totally silent; waiting to see what in the world was going on.

Vegeta started in surprise and smirked evilly as Kiwi's face turned a bright shade of maroon. He approached the alien only to back away as another loud noise passed through the alien. From the uncomfortable look on his face, that one was probably wet too.

Vegeta threw back his head and laughed long and heartily. He brought his head back down to smirk gleefully at the embarrassed alien, "Here I wanted a fight and I'll I'm getting is a lot of hot air."

A huge ripple of laughter tore through the stadium, and Bulma was finally able to let go of barely contained humor with everyone else.

Kiwi glared daggers at Vegeta, clutching his stomach as another one let itself be heard and felt. "Ve-ge-ta!" The word came out with great effort.

Vegeta waved a hand in the air languidly, "No, no. I quite understand, Kiwi. You don't want to postpone this fight just because of a minor—problem."

Kiwi made to move toward Vegeta with the full intent of killing the Saiyan, but yet another tore through his body, causing him to double over. A large area of the stadium was quickly being cleared behind him.

Vegeta frowned, "Kiwi! You're scaring all the spectators away!" He advanced on the hapless alien, smirking all the while. "You look like you're very uncomfortable." He stopped right before him and widened his smirk, "Why don't you take a seat?"

Before the alien's eyes could do more than widen in horrified realization, Vegeta dropped down and swept Kiwi's legs out from under him. Kiwi landed on his bottom with a huge, squishing sound.

Everyone made disgusted noises while Vegeta rose chuckling. He leaned down and whispered in the enraged alien's ear, "I would give you mercy and knock you out, but I rather like you in this position. Perhaps you should be careful what you say next time, eh? Though if you want to stick your foot in your mouth again, be my guest. I much enjoy the results."

With that being said, and one enraged and impotent alien left on the floor to much laughter and discomfort, Vegeta walked out of the room.

Frieza's cold eyes glittered as he watched the monkey exit the arena, superiority etched in every line. The monkey was getting much too bold and confident. When Frieza had first gotten him, he had planned on having fun breaking the proud creature. He had even encouraged his defiance somewhat, allowing him the freedom to voice his opinions and refuse Frieza some things, although Frieza let him know how painful that could be.

The lizard made his way unnoticed through the crowd the same way he'd come in, his eyes piercing their way through the crowd to where the monkey Prince's companion was. The first two years, the change in Vegeta had been noticeable as Frieza constantly reminded the monkey of his father's 'abandonment', of his own race's weakness as they bowed and scraped to him. Then there was the little incident with the female that Frieza had 'given' him. That had gone well. When Nappa had died Frieza had finally thought that the monkey would be broken, but not a year later, the King had managed to send another monkey as the Prince's 'bodyguard'.

Frieza was truly confused by this one. Kakarott seemed almost immune to Frieza's taunts and deferred to his Prince in all things. It seemed that immunity was spreading to Vegeta, and the actions of the monkey today showed the danger of such immunity. Frankly Frieza was sick of the monkey's impudence. He wanted him broken, nothing more than a tool Frieza could extend to get more planets under his sphere of influence.

He smirked as he exited the arena and approached the monkey from behind unnoticed. He knew just how to take care of it too. Sure, the results wouldn't be fast, but the fact that they would be slow would actually be better.

"Vegeta. A nice performance back there." He smirked as the monkey's spine stiffened and he muttered something under his breath, probably a curse for not sensing Frieza. Vegeta turned slowly toward Frieza, face set in a cold mask. He merely raised a brow in question. Yes, Vegeta definitely needed some changes.

Frieza's tail seductively sliced through the air behind him, accenting his suave tone. "Unfortunately I can't condone the unprovoked maltreatment of any of my soldiers. Therefore, I think you and Kakarott should take a little time away." As Frieza's smirk grew, Vegeta felt a cold lump settle into his stomach.

**NEXT**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Bulma was still giggling as Kakarott helped her into the training room. Vegeta raised his face from his towel and smirked. Bulma chuckled as she approached him. He lowered the cloth and gave her a curious look.

Bulma held up the wad of money she had earned, quite a lot since she was one of the few who had bet for Vegeta. Her finger was separating the money into two even piles and it was one of these piles that she handed to Vegeta.

Vegeta took the money with a puzzled look, "What's this?"

"Well, since you won the fight, half of the money I won should be yours."

Vegeta gazed at the money he held, "What would I do with this?"

Bulma shrugged and put the rest of the money in her pocket, "Whatever you want. You should have seen the look on Kiwi's whore's face when she lost all that money. Seven hundred zenni from that dumb blonde alone."

Vegeta shrugged and turned back to hang his towel on the rack, but he did pocket the money. "While it was fun, it was hardly a fight." All evidence of his good mood had vanished.

Bulma turned to Kakarott, who supplied her with an answer, "Frieza didn't like what happened. He's sent us to go purge a planet, but he won't tell us what it's like. Plus—"

Vegeta turned to the other Saiyan, eyebrows drawn down, "Shut up, Kakarott! She doesn't need to concern herself with us. Or did you forget we aren't supposed to form attachments?"

Bulma huffed, "Don't yell at him just because you're in a bad mood, Vegeta! Besides, the problem of not knowing about the planet is easily solved."

Vegeta raised a brow at her, "Really. And don't you have projects to finish since you only have three months left? And what about your guards? I heard when you're working you have four watching you."

Bulma smiled, "Well, three now. Kiwi was one of the guards so I have that to thank you for as well. I doubt he'll be back anytime soon with that 'problem'. The other three guards are pushovers

"Anyway, I have plenty of time to finish the projects. In fact, I could get that all done tomorrow but I don't want Frieza to give me any more projects of mass destruction to create."

Vegeta grunted and looked over at Kakarott who raised both hands in surrender, "You've beaten me up for long enough, Vegeta. I'm going to get some rest since we leave tomorrow."

Bulma looked shocked, "You leave tomorrow?"

Kakarott smiled sadly, "Yeah." He looked behind Bulma to Vegeta and didn't say anything more, just gave her a big hug that prevented her from looking back to see what he had been looking at. The hug about squeezed the—oh, wait. Kiwi's already done that.

Bulma returned the hug and watched as Kakarott left the room, his attitude making her feel as if she wasn't going to see him again.

When Kakarott had left, Bulma turned back to Vegeta, who was beginning his push-ups. "Vegeta, what's going on?"

"Nothing."

"Bull! You're never this monosyllabic unless something is going on."

Vegeta glared up at her, not answering.

Bulma sat down with a sigh, "Well, did you bring the blueprints?"

Vegeta grunted, "Don't need them."

Bulma cocked her head to one side, "Why not? I could probably get some of them done tonight and have the rest of them ready when you get back."

"Don't worry about it. Your help isn't needed any longer."

Bulma crossed her arms over her chest, but decided to ignore the stinging comment. Only a few days of Vegeta and she already knew enough to know that if you wanted him to talk you had to beat around the bush. "So, what did Kiwi say that made you challenge him?"

Vegeta paused in his push-ups to look at her. Seeing her looking genuinely curious, he shrugged, "Said I was asexual."

Bulma laughed and immediately apologized when Vegeta stopped his exercise and stabbed his dark eyes at her, "Who in the world would think you're asexual? With a body like that—"

Vegeta's eyebrow rose as he himself did. He inspected himself and looked back up at Bulma, "With a body like what?"

Bulma made an exasperated sound, "Of course you can't see it, silly! But every woman on this spaceship would drop the man they have for one second with you."

Vegeta seemed to preen under the compliment and Bulma sighed, "I should know better. Am I going to need a pry bar to get your head through the door now?"

The question deflated him slightly, but he still cocked his head at her, standing with his arms casually at his sides, "It's not like I'd want any of them. None of them fit my requirements."

"Your requirements?" Bulma grinned.

Vegeta shook his head, folding his arms across his chest, "No, you look the type that would play matchmaker." He shrugged, "I don't have time for anyone else anyway."

"You have time for me," she was quick to point out.

He shrugged again, "Not really. I just look up and you're there." He acted as if her being there was a big nuisance.

Bulma threw her head to one size, "Well. I see how it is…."

She pulled out her tool kit she'd said she'd bring; ignoring his smirk, and opened it to reveal a laptop, "Well, you arrogant jerk, you want to know about this planet?"

Vegeta's eyebrows rose, "Don't you need something to connect that to?"

Bulma rolled her eyes, "Please. I'm not that barbaric. It's called wireless."

Vegeta shrugged, "Whatever. The planet's called Yardrat."

Bulma typed in a few things and waited before the computer beeped at her, "Ah, here it is. Yardrat. Population—"

Vegeta cut through her, "What are their defenses like? How many troops? Any specialized weapons or other means of attack?"

Bulma smirked, "Well, according to Frieza's database—"

"Frieza's database!" He was looking over her shoulder in a second and she scooted over so he could sit next to her, which he did without moving his eyes from the screen. "How did you get into there? It's coded."

Bulma shrugged, "It's called hacking." She pointed to a sentence on the page, "Troops: none, a peaceful race. However it says they have a special technique. Something called Instant Transmission. It says they can just vanish into thin air and appear somewhere else."

Vegeta scoffed, "It's probably speed."

Bulma shook her head, "Looks like the Ginyu Force was sent down and couldn't get rid of them, in fact one of them died of some kind of heart disease."

Vegeta peered at the screen; though at the moment Bulma was scrolling down to find out more about the heart disease, "Why didn't they just destroy the whole planet?"

"Oh, the buyer wanted it kept intact, just the people and any sign of their existence erased. Here it is," she trailed off, mouthing the words she was reading. Vegeta leaned back, waiting for whatever it was she was looking for.

"Vegeta—"

The tone of her voice straightened him right back up, "What?"

She pointed at the screen. To the right of the paragraph Bulma had been reading about the disease was a list of people susceptible to the disease. Bulma was pointing to a name that made Vegeta give a sharp intake of breath, "Kakarott?"

Bulma nodded silently and clicked on the name, bringing up a page that showed a picture of Kakarott that he obviously didn't know was being taken of him. To the right of the picture was a full history of the Saiyan, including all the purgings that had been done and how long each had taken.

Vegeta's eyes widened at what else was on the page and he rose, rage etched into every line. "That bas—" Bulma's hand tugging on his arm broke him off and he looked down at her, "He's going to kill Kakarott!"

Bulma shook her head, "You can't go after him! You know that! Just let me figure out a way around this."

Vegeta stared down at her for a long moment before grunting in acquiescence and sitting back down, folding his arms across his chest once again and leaning back as Bulma furiously tapped on the keyboard, scanning so many pages it made Vegeta's head spin.

Bulma was shaking her head at the end of two minutes. She turned to Vegeta with a frown, "There's nothing in here that will get him out of that purge. Frieza's making sure he goes no matter what."

Vegeta did not look at her, opting to stare at the ceiling instead, "We're not supposed to form attachments!" Perhaps he didn't know he had said it aloud.

Bulma sighed, "You have to wonder what kind of person you would have been if you didn't have Kakarott for a friend."

Vegeta's eyes flicked to her, but the rest of his body did not budge, "I never said he was my friend."

Bulma rolled her eyes, "Of course, Vegeta. I can see the hate seething off you in waves."

Vegeta stood suddenly, almost knocking the laptop off her lap. She barely caught it in time. By the time she looked up at him, he was already boring a hole through her. She sighed again, softer this time, "I'm sorry, Vegeta. I'm just not too happy about this either, you know. I've only known you two for what—three days and I can't imagine anything happening to either one of you."

He grudgingly seemed to relax, though he still didn't look pleased. She decided moving on with the topic would be best. "Should we tell him?"

Vegeta shook his head, "I'd rather not. Frieza already knows and there's just no way to prepare for anything Frieza has planned," he made a gesture at the laptop, indicating the purge as an example, "He'd only become paranoid, make a too obvious blunder."

Bulma nodded and put a finger to her chin, tapping it, "Well, what about you knocking him out before you get on-planet?"

Vegeta snorted, "That would be a good idea except for the fact that we'll be in individual pods under a drug-induced sleep."

Bulma brightened, "Separate pods and asleep, huh? Well, show me which pod is his and I can rig it so that it never stops releasing that sleeping gas and never opens. He'll sleep right through the purge."

Vegeta raised a brow and gave her an appraising look, "That might just work." He moved to the grate and Bulma had to quickly pack away her stuff and hurriedly follow him.

He tapped a foot impatiently, "We don't have long till I'm expected out of here and in my room. Will you have enough time?"

Bulma nodded, "It's easier to break something than it is to fix and since I can fix things quickly we should have time to spare. You lead or me?"

"I'll lead." So saying, Vegeta jumped down into the hole and was snaking through the crawlspace before Bulma had placed both feet in it.

"Wait up!" she hissed.

He stopped and glanced back, not hiding his impatience. Bulma frowned at him, "What? Already know the place so well you don't need me?"

He made a shrugging motion she barely saw in the dark and continued on, talking as they moved, "Once I knew the way from to the mess hall it wasn't hard to map out the rest. Though I don't know the location of your rooms…." He paused, "Nevermind. I do now."

"Huh?"

He sighed with frustration, "Sometimes I feel like I'm talking to Kakarott." He ignored her indignant huff, "Saiyans have better senses than a human. I can smell your scent."

Bulma kept pace with Vegeta, feeling like every breath that came out of her was her last, "Oh? What do…I smell like?"

Vegeta slowed down marginally as he answered, "I don't know. You smell like you. It's like asking what a certain person's ki signature feels like."

"Oh. Well, do I smell nice?""

Vegeta stopped and turned around. Bulma almost bumped into him and could clearly see the incredulous look on his face. She almost giggled. "Girl, what kind of question is that? You shower, don't you? You don't smell like last week's lunch, do you?" He turned around just as abruptly and started off again, causing Bulma to have to catch up with him, out of breath once again.

"It was just a question!"

"Well, that topped the list of all the stupid questions Kakarott has ever asked me. I swear, if he ever asked me if he 'smelled nice' I'd deck him! You're lucky I don't do the same to you!"

Bulma scoffed, "Whatever, Vegeta."

"Shut up, girl! We're here." He had stopped right above yet another Bulma-made hole in their ceiling, or the floor as it was.

Bulma hissed at him, wanting to keep her voice low, "My name is Bulma! You can at least call me something other than girl! I am not a girl!"

He seemed to test the air around her with his nose and she shrank back, "What are you doing?"

He frowned at her, "You are a girl." He said it with such conviction that she knew what he meant.

"That's just gross, Vegeta! You don't see me asking you if you've ever done it!"

Vegeta smirked, "Like I'd ever tell you."

Bulma felt like hitting him, but instead settled with pushing past him and crawling out from under the workbench she had hidden the hole under.

Vegeta followed after her, staying low and being glad he did when he saw the low bench he would have surely cracked his head on. He glanced over at the female to see her crawling out from under the bench, giving him a look that was full of disappointment. He ground his teeth. She wanted him to hit his head!

As Vegeta rose to stand beside her, Bulma folded her arms across her chest and stated stonily, "Since you can't seem to tell me if I smell good or not, don't smell me!"

Vegeta sneered, amused by her childish ire. "It's second nature, girl. It would be like asking Kakarott to stop eating."

Bulma glared as she moved through the rows of pods in the docking bay, "What you did not one minute earlier was not second nature!" They were both still talking lowly, although Bulma's voice was an angry hiss.

Vegeta shrugged, "You brought up the point. I just saw fit to clarify you on it."

"Well, don't clarify me on any more points, Vegeta! Now, where's Kakarott's stupid pod?"

Vegeta smirked and moved past Bulma, leading her around a set of pods, "Testy, test—" He suddenly swallowed his words and darted back around the set of pods, pulling her back with him. She almost scolded him but stopped at his pale face. She dared to peek around the corner he was looking around and quickly darted back around with him.

Frieza paced in front of the pod, behind a mechanic who was obviously checking the ship out. The lizard's voice reached her and she shivered, looking up at Vegeta for his response. His lips were thin lines that were starkly outlined against his flushed face. His eyes were narrowed pinpricks that she would've been hard pressed to see if he wasn't pressing her back against his chest with an arm around her waist, as if she would run right out where Frieza could see her. She did not try to escape his grip.

"Are you sure you've checked anything?"

"Y-yes, milord, but of course. Everything is ready to go for tomorrow."

"Good. That Vegeta is too cunning. It would be just like him to find out what I was planning and sabotage the pod so it wouldn't start. I will not allow my plans to backfire. Everything must be perfect."

"Oh, it will be, sire!"

Frieza's voice went down several octaves and Bulma felt the blood freeze in her veins. What in the world would this monster be like close up? How could Earth ever had signed a treaty with this lizard? Then again, she well remembered his charm just nine months ago. "It better. Or it will be your life instead of that monkey's."

She felt Vegeta's arm twitch where it was around her waist and put a hand on it, as if to still it. She didn't have to look at Vegeta to know he wanted nothing more than to attack Frieza and rip him limb from limb. You didn't live, eat, and train with someone for ten years, even if he wasn't the brightest, without forming some kind of amity.

She heard footsteps and dared to look around the pile again, feeling Vegeta's arm tighten minutely around her. She shrugged her shoulders at him and he loosened. Frieza was walking off and Bulma felt as if a great cold had left the room as soon as the doors closed behind him.

The mechanic, too, seemed to feel a change in temperature, or at least tension. He heaved a great sigh of relief and bent down to work, muttering something neither Vegeta nor Bulma could hear.

Bulma leaned back with a sigh of her own and was suddenly very aware of Vegeta's presence at her back; a very warm and comfortable presence. She shifted slightly and he immediately released her. She turned her head to look at his expression but he seemed not even to notice her, his eyes locked on the mechanic.

She looked too to see the mechanic putting his tools away and getting up, shuffling to the door as fast as his arthritic legs could carry him. As soon as he was through the door, Vegeta left the cover and approached the pod, back pressed as far against the pods as possible in case either Frieza or the mechanic had forgotten something.

Soon he motioned for Bulma and she followed him to stand beside the pod. She knelt down and opened up her case, getting out the tools she knew she would need and opening up the panel the mechanic had been tinkering in with a screwdriver.

She sat back on her heels at the collection of wires and blipping lights, trying to sort out each of their functions from looks alone.

Vegeta made an impatient growl, almost sounding like a caged animal, "Hurry up."

Bulma narrowed her eyes at Vegeta, not looking at him, as she bent to the task at hand, "Calm down, Vegeta. Let me work. If I don't get this right I could give Kakarott too much of that gas and put him to sleep forever."

Vegeta grunted and knelt down beside her, watching her every move. She found his observing didn't bother her half as much as Kiwi's, as he wasn't looking at anything but her work.

She soon found the controls for the release of the gas and carefully adjusted its shut-off time so that it wouldn't shut off until Kakarott got back to the mothership. This automatically kept the door locked. Nothing short of a direct hit with a ki blast of more than average proportions would open the pod.

She leaned back and wiped her hands on her pants, "Done."

Vegeta rose smoothly and Bulma did so as well. He didn't even look at her as he headed back to the crawlspace. She knew the sight of Frieza had disturbed him, but not this much.

She reached him before he reached the bench and lightly touched his arm. He actually jumped at the light contact, his eyes widened slightly as they looked at her, "Vegeta, what aren't you telling me?"

Vegeta sighed and turned fully to face her. She did deserve to know. How could it be only three days that they had known each other? It felt longer. "You'll be leaving before we're back."

She tilted her head to one side, her raised eyebrows asking him to explain. He felt like running a hand through his hair but resisted the urge, "This purge is going to take us four to five months. With all that stuff about the Instant Transmission, it may take longer."

Her face fell, "Oh. That's why Kakarott was acting like that."

Vegeta didn't answer as he turned back around and ducked under the bench. Bulma took a deep breath and followed him. They were silent the rest of the way back to the training room. Vegeta entered the training room, but when Bulma tried to follow, Vegeta held her back with a hand, "I need to sleep and so do you. Go back to your room."

Bulma lowered her head. Vegeta moved the grate into position to be halted by Bulma's voice. "You know where my room is, right?"

Vegeta's brows furrowed but he nodded.

"Good. If you guys get back before the three months," at his shaking head her tone became harder, "IF, then come give me a visit, no matter what time it is. It probably won't be safe for me to come back here."

Vegeta reluctantly nodded, not wanting to give the girl false hope. "IF we get back before you go, you can be sure we'll come see you first."

"Good. Don't get yourself killed, Vegeta."

Vegeta looked at her with utmost sincerity as he replaced the grate, "Neither me nor Kakarott."

**NEXT**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Vegeta walked the halls of the ship, finding the familiar surroundings not at all comforting, as something that acted like a home should have been. He felt as if at any second he would be attacked, either verbally or physically. That feeling made him look more like a wary, ragged predator than the purge had.

A frown was on his face and his eyes constantly roved around him. He didn't know whether it was more or less, but it was around three months. Frieza had made sure that Vegeta knew that nothing had changed in those three months and that he wasn't happy with the outcome of the purge.

Vegeta knew why Frieza was especially displeased about this mission. Kakarott had stayed asleep the entire purge, only waking when they arrived back on the ship. The expression on his face had been quite humorous as he tried to figure out how he had gone to sleep on the ship to wake up on the ship, everything in-between a blank.

Vegeta had told him to go to their training room, refusing to explain, and was about to follow him when a messenger told him Frieza requested his presence. Now he was walking to the training room with a leg that wanted to be carried in a limp, which he refused to do. There were too many watchful eyes that would see such weakness as a time to strike.

He wanted to curse, or at least scream wordlessly to the skies. His plans were ruined. He hadn't thought about them during the purge, but now that he was back in the thickness of Frieza's plots and schemes he was acutely reminded.

It had all seemed so perfect when that blue-haired human had mentioned working on projects for Frieza. It had turned even better when she had turned out to be a mechanical genius. He had planned on using her obvious liking for Kakarott to convince her to help him, but she had surprised him by agreeing solely on the fact that she trusted him.

Then the purge had been ordered and everything had gone awry from there. Even if the girl were still here; very unlikely the way his luck was turning, she wouldn't have time to do anything. He shook his head, eyes straying to his backside out of habit.

He would defeat Frieza, somehow, however long it took to do it. He would not spend the rest of life under him. He would not die a slave to the lizard.

Before he killed him, though, he planned on wringing a confession out of him. He wanted the lizard to know he had never tricked him with that meteor story, even if he had pulled the wool over Kakarott's eyes.

Vegeta paused suddenly as he caught a noise in the air, then mentally shrugged and continued on. He was, therefore, quite surprised when something with a light-build smacked into him.

He grabbed the figure out of instinct more than anything else. The form fought against the hold, not making a sound, but tearing and clawing at him as if he was going to eat them alive.

"Hold still!" He soon put both of his hands to use, grabbing the other arm so that he could see the wildly flinging form clearly, "Do you know who—" The words stuck in his throat as the definite smell filled his nose; the next thing hitting him the color blue.

Bulma looked up at Vegeta but did not seem to see him, for she still thrashed in his grip. Her blue eyes were shining pools of fright that struck him, their look alone almost making him release her. "Let me go! Please!" Despite the pleading tone, her feet were defiantly kicking his ankles as hard as they could.

Instead, he almost pulled her closer, his own eyes widened at the shock of seeing her and her not even recognizing him. It hadn't been that long. He took in the state of her clothes, which looked torn, skin clearly showing bruises and gashes that bled slowly. Her hair was disheveled. It looked as if she'd just barely gotten away from a pack of carnivores. Before he could ask her anything, not that he could decide on one question to ask, two other people he recognized just as clearly rounded the corner Bulma had sprinted into him from.

Both men skid to a halt at the sight of Vegeta holding Bulma, one grinning in triumph at their prey being caught, the other stepping forward to take charge as he usually did.

"Vegeta, we'll take it over from here. I'm sure Frieza will reward you highly for capturing her."

Vegeta looked doubly confused at Zarbon's words and looked down at the female he held in time to see her eyes roll to the back of her head, that look of fright with no recognition still on her face. He caught her as she fainted, that sight alone seeming totally out of character for her. He himself seemed to be out of character as he cradled her body and turned her away from Zarbon and Dodoria, face turned toward them to glare at first one, then the other, "What's going on?"

Zarbon's eyes narrowed and he took another step forward, "Vegeta, it is none of your concern. If Frieza sees fit to tell you, he will, but you'll have to take it up with him. We have been instructed to—capture the female. Now hand her over."

His voice was calm and slow, but Vegeta did not miss the pause. "What has she done?"

Zarbon shook his head, "Vegeta…this is not like you, to question so much. This is like one of your purge missions, just accept and do as your told."

Vegeta's stance changed minutely and Zarbon knew the Saiyan had made his decision against them. Mentioning the purge and then commanding obedience probably hadn't been a good move diplomatically speaking.

Zarbon motioned Dodoria discreetly with one hand and the pink alien nodded, stepping forward slightly. Vegeta's eyes flickered from one alien to the other, narrowed in concentration. He shifted slightly and put the girl carefully on the ground behind him, never moving his eyes from the two before him.

Zarbon made a slightly disappointed sigh, "Vegeta, you cannot defeat both of us. Even if you do, there's no way you can go against Lord Frieza." His golden eyes flickered momentarily behind Vegeta and he smirked. "There's no way you can win this, Vegeta, just hand over Bulma and we can all forget this."

Vegeta snorted, "That's not likely to happen, now is it?" He turned quickly and fired off a ki blast that knocked Kiwi, who had been sneaking up behind him, back into the hull of the ship.

Zarbon and Dodoria jumped in to attack as soon as Vegeta fired and he turned, cursing at the both of them, to try and stave off the double assault.

Zarbon swept in low, fist coming up for hook aimed for Vegeta's chest. Dodoria flanked the Saiyan, swooping in for a sidekick. Vegeta watched both attacks come at him, waiting, dark eyes searching for an elusive opening.

Luckily those eyes were trained to spot such openings and use them without conscious thought. As both men swooped in, Dodoria's attack was a split second earlier than Zarbon's. Vegeta twisted his body to the side, throwing his hip outward so that the kick missed him by a millimeter and ducking down, feeling the air from the other man's attack pass right over his head.

Vegeta allowed his fall to carry him to the ground, his chest brushing the floor before he pushed off with his hands, rearing his body up onto his hands and driving his feet back into the pink alien's gut, not waiting for the loss of breath from his enemy before spinning his body around, knees tucking into his stomach and leaping back upright and to the side, throwing an elbow into the gasping alien's face and knocking him off his feet.

Vegeta's quick movements saved him from Zarbon's second attack, which had been aimed for the Saiyan's back as he lay on the ground. Now Zarbon turned, growling, and charged the smaller man, trying to catch him off guard with an elbow to the side of the head.

Vegeta moved his head to the side, bringing an arm up at an angle so that the blow slid off it. Zarbon's momentum did not stop and he soon found himself as doubled-up as Dodoria had been as Vegeta's knee connected with his stomach.

Vegeta had to break off his advantage with Zarbon however, to turn quickly, not quite able to block the punishing hit that glanced off his side as Kiwi, having recovered, tried to get a disabling blow onto the distracted Prince's spine. Vegeta gritted his teeth from bruised ribs and took a step into Kiwi's attack area, grabbing both the surprised alien's ears and pulling his head into an upraised knee, feeling a crack as the purple nose broke.

He swung Kiwi around, still by the ears, and knocked him into Zarbon, throwing a sidekick at the rising Dodoria that skidded the blob back a few feet.

Vegeta stood with his feet slightly apart, breath heaving as he watched the three regroup before him. Zarbon still had that cocky assuredness, knowing their numbers gave them an advantage.

When Vegeta shifted slightly and his left knee buckled under him, he found yet another advantage. Plus Vegeta was favoring that side of his body, where Kiwi had hit him in the ribs. He pointed this out in hushed tones to the other two, who nodded. Their goal was to concentrate all their attacks on Vegeta's right side, and when he moved to block them, Zarbon would come into the left. Even if Vegeta did manage to stall them for a time, three against one would wear anyone down.

Vegeta glanced down momentarily at the unconscious girl, cursing the luck that had caused her to pass out. If he took the time to pick her up, he would lose the time to escape. He had to take out at least two of his attackers before he had any chance of relocating to a better fighting place. The corridor wasn't made for fights; the three could easily corner him, which it looked like they were trying to do. He couldn't even move far enough away from her to execute an all-out attack.

Zarbon stepped back, motioning both Kiwi and Dodoria forward. Both took the invitation, having a few bruises and bloody wounds to return to Vegeta. They phased out at the same time, and Vegeta quickly turned to his right, blocking one roundhouse to his head and ducking quickly below a reverse hook kick, trying to come up with an attack for at least one of them. He ended up connecting his fist with Kiwi's groin, smirking as the alien doubled over howling.

He leaned back on one hand to sweep out his legs and knock Dodoria from his feet, only to find that his attack on Kiwi had allowed Dodoria to launch his own attack.

Dodoria's fist connected with a sharp crack to his cheekbone, snapping it like a twig and sending him flying to stop when his back connected with a sickening thud with the steel wall. He screamed as he felt the leg Frieza had already punished fold underneath his body in an unnatural manner, the shooting pain telling him it was now broken at the knee.

His body tried to fall forward to hit the floor, but his treatment was not yet done. A sneering Zarbon hauled him up by his neck, chuckling as Vegeta clawed the hand that held him and kicked out with his good leg.

Zarbon took care of Vegeta's defiance with one well-placed hit to Vegeta's broken leg, laughing as Vegeta cringed in an effort to not cry out again, making a strangled sound instead. "I tried to warn you, but you had to be stubborn, not that Lord Frieza minds. He'll miss your purging efficiency to be sure, but a simple lie will keep that stupid companion of yours under his command. What shall it be now? An accident in the training room? Perhaps an embarrassing death, eh? More like you got a paper cut on paper that had been soaked in poison and died. I've heard that is the most humiliating death one can have."

Dodoria waddled up to join Zarbon in his taunts, "I don't know. I personally think giving him some of what Kiwi had and letting him dehydrate from it would be more degrading."

Both turned back to see Kiwi's reaction to this statement only to gape at the sight of Kakarott holding a dead Kiwi up by the throat, the alien's sightless eyes staring right through them until Kakarott threw the body to the side to slide down the hallway, broken neck folding up like an accordion when it stopped against a wall.

"What would Vegeta be doing with paper anyway? He doesn't read or write using paper. He uses those computers."

The careless way the words were spoken made Zarbon's jaw clench and he nodded at Dodoria, "Do worse to him than you did to Vegeta if you don't mind. I don't want him to be able to walk."

"But Lord Frieza—"

"—Will not tolerate failure! He just killed a member of Frieza's army, the penalty is death."

Dodoria nodded and turned to fully face the Saiyan, who didn't look to have moved from his position just in front of Bulma. Kakarott didn't know what was going on, but all he had to do was look at the struggling Vegeta still in Zarbon's grip to know that his ignorance did not matter.

As Dodoria phased out from in front of him to appear at his back, Kakarott casually twisted the front half of his body around and latched onto the alien's armor, throwing him back in front of him just hard enough to make him stumble. "I do train with Vegeta. Even he had nastier tricks than that!" He sounded disappointed, making Dodoria grit his teeth and mumble about 'stupid monkeys'.

Kakarott heard the low words and narrowed his eyes, "I hate that rumor!" Before Dodoria could ask what that had meant, Kakarott vanished from in front of him. Dodoria whirled around to be hauled up by the shoulder plates of his armor from the Saiyan above him and thrown headfirst into the wall right beside Zarbon, sliding down the wall unconscious.

Zarbon's eyes narrowed at Kakarott as he landed, not deigning to glance at the fallen Dodoria, "Your strategy has improved since last I saw you fight."

Kakarott looked shocked, "That was ten years ago, Zarbon! With the way Vegeta trained I had to improve or I'd be in the regen tank every night!"

Zarbon grunted and suddenly thrust a knee up and into Vegeta, allowing the Saiyan to drop down to the ground to cradle his stomach while trying to get off his broken leg at the same time. "Stay right there, Vegeta. I'll be with you in a second."

Vegeta growled, not able to do anything but what Zarbon had said. Besides, he wanted to take the distraction Kakarott was providing to get the girl out of the way. All it would take was Kakarott forgetting she was there and tripping over her.

Kakarott blocked the punches aimed liked bullets for his abdomen, midriff, and torso. The first two that got in, one to his gut and another below his shoulder blade, knocked him slightly askew, allowing Zarbon to snap off a jump crescent that whipped across his face, literally spinning him around.

Kakarott remembered this painful lesson from Vegeta and allowed the spin to carry him downwards, Zarbon's form flying over his bent body. Kakarott flipped backwards, doing a handstand momentarily, before landing on both feet, back to Zarbon and delivering a spinning hook kick that knocked the just turning alien off his feet.

Vegeta had finally gained his breath and managed to throw himself forward so that he was lying flat on his stomach, broken leg stretched out in a more comfortable position, though the twinges from it made him twitch irritably.

He painstakingly inched forward toward Bulma, wondering as he did so how exactly he was going to drag both her and him away from the battle.

After what seemed like an hour, he was close enough to grab a hold of Bulma's foot and shake it, falling back on trying to get her awake enough she could get herself away from the battle raging not far from her head.

A boot suddenly stomped down on Vegeta's hand, causing the Saiyan to arch his back, wordless shout filling the silence that was broken by a groan from the awakening Bulma.

Dodoria gave Vegeta's hand another good stomp, laughing as it broke beneath his weight and Vegeta's yell was voiced, which woke Bulma up completely. She half propped herself up, taking in the fight right above her head and the sight of the huge pink alien laughing as he crushed a smaller alien's hand beneath his heel. She couldn't see the dark-haired alien's features, as he seemed to be trying to muffle his screams in the floor. His hand was outstretched and barely touching her foot, but for what reason?

She immediately drew back her feet and scooted herself to the side, away from both confrontations.

Vegeta barely felt the movement beneath his crushed hand and raised his face to look with wavering sight at the obviously confused and frightened girl. He tried to form words, but it was at that moment that Dodoria's foot crashed down on his hand once again, leaving him screaming as the big, pink, monstrosity lumbered toward the cowering female, smirking evilly.

Vegeta suddenly choked back the rest of the scream and lunged forward with his good hand, brows drawn down and teeth gritted in a feral growl as he grasped Dodoria's foot around the ankle and pulled back as hard as he could.

Dodoria's mouth formed a neat 'O' as he slowly leaned forward, the pull on the foot toppling him down to hit the floor heavily, bouncing even, right at Bulma's feet. Bulma wasted no time in getting up and kicking the blubbery monster again and again, screaming her rage and fear at the monster who tried vainly to block her well-directed and forceful kicks.

Vegeta watched with half amusement as the tiny female kicked Dodoria into unconsciousness, vowing to ask her later how good it had felt. Right now though, he was awfully tired. He would just rest for a moment—

**NEXT**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Bulma stopped kicking Dodoria when she noticed the lack of response in his still form and turned at a small sound. The one who had knocked him down had closed his eyes, unconscious from the looks of it, and she thought it might be a good idea to move him away from the battle.

She walked carefully to him, as if he would jump up at any time and seize her, and grabbed him under both armpits, dragging him down the corridor a ways before letting him drop gently and dropping down herself beside him. She looked him over, noting the weird way his leg twisted. He suddenly cringed, folding into himself slightly, brows drawn together, but he did not cry out, instead letting his breath out in a hiss that was long and harsh.

Instinctively, she reached out a hand to comfort him, laying it gently on his cheek. He moaned at even that little contact, and she felt bone move under her hand, quickly removing it. They had even broken his cheekbone.

Bulma wanted nothing more than to join the stranger in slumber, however pain-filled it was. The last week had kept her on-edge and frazzled, as any hunted animal would be. She wouldn't have recognized her own parents if they had shown up. It was stress, plain and simple.

As other sounds approached them, Bulma looked up, attention caught in the fight that would decide her fate. The two were moving so fast she couldn't see either clearly, and she strained to get even a hint of who was winning.

Kakarott felt his back connect with the wall as Zarbon's elbow successfully broke through his defenses and whipped his head to one side. Instinctively Kakarott ducked, hearing the sound of Zarbon's punch connecting with the wall where his face had been and feeling bits of steel fall around him. He pushed himself forward, driving both a knee and an uppercut into Zarbon's stomach. Zarbon stumbled backwards, allowing Kakarott to straighten fully and grab the blue-skinned alien's shoulders, pulling him into a headbutt directly to his forehead.

Zarbon wheeled back, applying trembling fingers to his head, golden eyes flashing at the blood that came off. He snapped those eyes back to Kakarott, "Oh, you're going to pay for that, Saiyan! Now you shall taste true power!"

Kakarott's eyes popped open as wide as possible as Zarbon thrust out his chest— and his chest thrust out. The growth of muscle mass traveled down his arms and legs and reached the face, changing it from its once smooth beauty to a hideous apparition with gaping jaws and rows of serrated teeth that salivated as if this new creature had not eaten in years.

While that was probably true, that was not Kakarott's current question, but rather how he found himself in a prone position on the floor, staring up at a sneering Zarbon with an aching in his chest telling of quite a few ribs broken.

Zarbon was suddenly flung into a wall as a ki blast connected with the side of his head. Kakarott took the opportunity to rise and decided this would be the time to retreat. He moved toward Bulma and Vegeta, noting that it had been Vegeta that had half-levered himself up to throw the ki blast.

Vegeta met Kakarott eyes with an intense gaze, clenched jaw telling of pain barely kept under control. He allowed Kakarott to heave him up by one arm, draping it over his shoulder.

Bulma rose with them, one eye on them and the other on Zarbon, who was trying to extract himself from the wall, one hand holding the side of his head, shaking it slightly to clear his sight.

Kakarott looked straight at her, confused by her lack of reaction and her drawing away. "Bulma?"

Bulma looked at the two basically supporting each other and blinked, "Kakarott?" With the recognition of Kakarott came the recognition of the other, "Vegeta?"

Vegeta growled, "No time for this. Go!"

Kakarott nodded, looking back as he hurried down the corridor. He smiled at Bulma when she moved to support Vegeta's other side, making them just a bit faster, and asked, "Where are we going?"

Vegeta growled, wanting nothing more than to push both away from him, but a broken leg does impede one's movement. "Training room. Take the crawlspace to the docking area. Get a ship and get out of here."

Bulma nodded, "We need to go to Earth."

Vegeta shook his head, stumbling a bit at the motion. Behind them they could clearly hear Zarbon promising all of them painful deaths. "No, that'd be the first place Frieza would look—"

"I need to warn them. I found—"

"Um, guys? Fascinating as this all is, shouldn't we focus on getting to the ship alive before we argue about where we're going to go? I mean, Zarbon sounds like he's following us."

Vegeta and Bulma both grudgingly agreed, although the looks on their faces promised a heated argument. Kakarott picked up the speed, feeling Vegeta's body twitch a little more but not able to slow down for his comfort. He couldn't help but chuckle. "You two act like you're married."

Both glared indignantly at the impetuous Saiyan.

"I'd rather marry Zarbon than this arrogant as—"

"I'd have to be insane to want to mate with this bi—"

Both stopped before the insults could be completed and shared glares that were quite humorous considering their positions and Kakarott chuckled again, still pushing their almost jogging gait. He noted with relief that the door was right before them and quickly pushed the button on it, practically pushing them all into the room and closing the door, locking it just as Zarbon hit it full-tilt, the door creaking under his weight. His eyes, still golden despite their now more lizard-like properties, glared at the three of them through the portal.

Kakarott pressed another button, smirking at the fuming Zarbon as a panel blocked the alien's view of the three. He moved to the lone bench and carefully sat Vegeta on it, having to lean him against the wall to keep him from sliding down.

Bulma released her own hold on Vegeta and ran a hand along his brow, wiping off the sweat that was there from his exertion. His eyes fluttered as if he would close them before he pushed himself up a little, hissing out his breath in pain at the movement. He looked to be glaring at Bulma, but she knew better, "Rest." How in the world could she have forgotten what he looked like?

He shook his head and turned his gaze to Kakarott, who was moving the grate from its opening, "Hurry up."

Kakarott rolled his eyes and pushed the grate aside, moving back to Vegeta, "And how are we supposed to get you through the crawlspace?"

Vegeta growled at him, "Never said you were going to."

Kakarott's eyes widened slightly, "We're supposed to just leave you here?" His tone was incredulous and he shook his head, "No way."

"Zarbon's going to break through here soon. He'll go right in after you. With me here I can distract him long enough for you to get to the ship."

Bulma grabbed his arm and applied pressure so that he would look at her, "You'd not even last two minutes. That's not long enough for us to get there and you know it. Besides, there are codes that lock up the pods so they won't fly. Without those codes we can't go anywhere. I checked. You're one of the ones that knows those codes."

Vegeta's lip curled in a snarl, though he made no sound, "I have a feeling it's that database that's gotten you into trouble, isn't it?" Before she could answer, he continued, "And how, praytell oh genius, are you going to get me through the crawlspace?"

Bulma put his arm around her shoulders and heaved up, "Come on. Get up."

He growled as he complied but Bulma ignored him, moving them slightly away from the bench, "Kakarott, tear the bench from the wall."

Kakarott looked ready to question, but the look on Bulma's face stopped him and he did as she asked, the bench torn from its supports as if he were breaking dried spaghetti noodles. She pointed to the floor and he sat it down.

When he saw her trying to lie Vegeta down on it, he moved to help, seeing the plan's outline.

Once they had gotten him as comfortable as possible on the makeshift cot, Bulma spoke, "You take the head and I'll take the feet. Just be careful getting him in and out."

Vegeta growled, not liking being spoken of as if he wasn't there. Another pound on the door and the ominous sound of its hinges creaking made him wave a hand impatiently, "We get it. Go!"

Bulma scowled but heaved the cot up with Kakarott and moved to the opening. It was quite difficult maneuvering the cot into the hole, but once they got it under there, it wasn't as hard as Bulma had feared to move in the crawlspace.

The minutes ticked by with the sound of their echoing footsteps and clumsy tripping in the air and the feeling that Bulma was never going to get the cramp out that was developing from bending over as she carried the cot. She couldn't imagine what Kakarott was feeling going backwards.

They were almost to the opening to the docks when a frustrated roar came from behind them. Bulma's wide eyes and sudden push on the cot had Kakarott moving his feet as fast as if Vegeta was charging him, and that was dangerously fast going backwards.

Getting the cot out of the opening was the second difficulty with the bench in the way. They could only get it halfway out.

Vegeta finally turned and snarled, not liking the fact that Bulma was down there with an enraged Zarbon close on their heels and they were stuck up here. "Just pull me the rest of the way out, fool!"

Kakarott nodded and did just that, ignoring the pained sounds from Vegeta as he pulled him out of the hole and laid him on the floor, reaching down and mangling the cot so that it came easily out.

He pulled Bulma out, who eagerly helped him as she could feel Zarbon's eyes on her exposed back. Kakarott hurriedly forced the cot back into the opening and used a small amount of ki to melt it there, sealing the hole up temporarily as Zarbon, as he had with the training room, banged up against it, curses flying at the three on the other side.

Vegeta's breath was coming out harsher and in shorter amounts than was safe for his lungs. His heated body felt a cool hand press to his forehead, "Vegeta! You have to stay conscious. We need the code!"

He fought off the darkness and allowed himself to be guided out from under the table and practically lifted by both arms, as his legs seemed to not want to respond. Everything was throbbing in time to his heartbeat, which he could hear quite clearly in his ears.

He must've blanked out, for the next moment he found himself being buckled into a seat, a hand pressing him back into it so that he didn't slip forward as he seemed wont to do.

He tried to focus on the bit of blue before him and dimly heard a question being asked. Finally a stinging sensation on his cheek, the one not broken, caused him to snarl at the younger Saiyan who had slapped him. He clearly heard Bulma's question this time. "Vegeta, what's the code?"

His lips formed the words of the code although he could not hear him himself speak them.

Bulma watched Vegeta's eyes finally roll to the back of his head and his whole body slump as he became unconscious and wondered how he had managed to stay awake this long.

Kakarott joined her in the front as she typed in the code, the ship coming alive around her. She quickly checked everything and maneuvered the ship so that it faced the closed hangar doors. "Kakarott, make an opening for the ship if you don't mind."

He nodded and stuck a hand out a panel Bulma opened for him, charging a ki blast that ripped from his hand and exploded into the door, leaving a gaping hole big enough for the ship to fly out of, which was exactly what Bulma did, sirens blaring all around as the trio made their getaway.

"We're going into hyperspace. Buckle in." She did as she herself had advised and waited for Kakarott to do the same before slamming her hand on the button, gravity forcing her back as the ship was propelled into speeds faster than that of the fastest member of the Ginyu Force.

Despite Vegeta's protests, Bulma had set the course for Earth. Vegeta would just have to find out why when he awoke.

Frieza glared down at the green-haired head that bowed humbly before him and moved his eyes to the pink blob that was in an equally degrading position, "Let me get this straight. I ordered you to simply retrieve the girl for me and you let her escape because of two MONKEYS!" Since everything before the shouted word had been quiet, the sudden change in volume made both flinch, though neither raised their heads.

Wisely keeping silent, the two meekly stayed in their positions, wanting nothing more than to come out of this alive.

"And so, these two monkeys and this girl stole one of my ships and took off and you don't know where?"

Again silence reigned in Frieza's hall. He gritted his teeth and visibly calmed himself, since killing his two best men would hurt him in the coming weeks. "You will make this up to me with either your lives—" He paused long enough to feel the fear from the two hit him like a tsunami before continuing, "or by following my every order to an exact measure so that you don't mess up."

Both men gave agreeing nods, voicing sounds that Frieza tuned out as he was so used to hearing them it was pitiful. He ran right over their assurances, "Zarbon, set a course for Earth. I estimate we're two weeks behind them now with the limited hyperspace that ship had. Dodoria, I want you to get the troops ready for a full-out assault on Earth. You will attack after I take care of the two monkeys you weren't able to dispose of, I will retrieve the female as you should have done, and I will think about sparing both your pitiful lives if you do a good job with this."

Both Zarbon and Dodoria rose, executing bows that were as perfect as befit their height and girth before leaving the lizard to his thoughts. Frieza thought this whole thing was pointless. In the end he would end up with one loud-mouthed temperamental girl and two dead monkeys. Whoopee. The only reason he continued was that he needed to 'finish' this deal with Earth.

He sighed and walked over to the communication center set up in the room. Running an empire was such hard work. Sneering, he opened up a link to Earth. However, getting to indulge in the treats of the job was always enjoyable. Time to indulge.

**NEXT**


End file.
